Florida forever

A land acquisition approved by the state Wednesday includes 10,996 acres within the Caloosahatchee Big Cypress Corridor in Collier and Hendry counties. Also approved for purchased was a 1,059-acre rural lands protection easement within the Siboney Ranch Project in Okeechobee County.

The Florida Forever Program has added another 16 square miles of land in Collier and Hendry counties for endangered species like the Florida panther to wander. Most of the land in Caloosahatchee-Big Cypress Corridor

The Florida Acquisition and Restoration Council approved the application by Trust for Public Land to secure a conservation designation for the Rail-Trail Corridor.

Nearly 4,000 acres in Collier and Hendry counties are part of a nearly 35,000-acre package of what is labeled as critical conservation land approved for protection Wednesday.Additionally, approval of a permanent agricultural land conservation easement for a nearly 4,000-acre area in Charlotte County will help support Southwest Florida’s water resources.The approval came via Governor Ron DeSantis and the Florida Cabinet through the Florida Forever Program and legislative appropriations, marking a significant step in preserving the state’s natural heritage.

Land and conservation easements worth $318 million and designed to protect more than 85,000 acres of Florida’s most important wildlife habitats and rural ranchlands were approved for purchase by the state Cabinet Tuesday.Many of the proposed easements are part of the Florida Wildlife Corridor.The purchased conservation lands cover 134 square miles, or 2.5 times the size of the City of Miami, and constitute the largest increment of conservation land and easement purchases ever proposed on a single Cabinet agenda. House and Senate leaders in the Florida Legislature included strategic appropriations for conservation land acquisitions and easements in Florida's budget—an important investment in Florida's economy, ecology, and quality of life.

Florida panthers will be losing more than 10 square miles of Western Everglades in which they currently roam if the builders get their way. Beloved endangered cougars are gaining ground thanks to preservation efforts that are costing taxpayers.

Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson is seeking $300 million for a program designed to keep swaths of rural land from commercial and residential development, triple the amount vetoed by Gov. Ron DeSantis this year.

Several environmental groups and lawmakers gathered in four cities across the state Friday to ask for full funding from Tallahassee for Florida's main...

The results of Florida’s 2018 Legislative Session, which ended earlier this month, were a mixed bag when it comes to priorities for the state’s…

Neglected for nearly a decade, the Florida Forever conservation program would get $100.8 million in a proposed $88.7 billion budget that lawmakers are...